Crimson Tide
by Telpeduril
Summary: A stay in Kyoto turns disastrous as the Kenshin-gumi is swept up in a battle of politics, drugs, and old grudges. Bonds will be strengthened and severed as each member must fight to keep their sanity intact against external turmoil and internal demons. BK
1. Lingering Shadows

Disclaimer: Once upon a time in a kingdom far-far away there lived a demented elf who kidnapped Himura Kenshin and locked him in her basement. This elf was content with her redheaded hitokiri and entertained numerous plans involving the hapless rurouni that would satisfy her own devious nature. However, these plans came to an abrupt halt when a certain Tanuki-like kenjustsu instructor beat the said elf into near oblivion. This elf no longer owns Rurouni Kenshin, please don't sue.

_Italics_ character thoughts

**_Bold Italics_** past conversation being remembered

Crimson Tide

Chapter 1: Lingering Shadows

"_**Open your eyes."**_

She sat there in white, the folds of her kimono pooling on the bleached wood beneath her. She was the image of majestic grace, the epiphany of sorrow.

"**_Do you see the crane?"_**

The moonlight cast distorted rays through the rice paper, deepening the shadows of the woman's face. Her hair was knotted tightly at the base of her nape and her hands were folded placidly in her lap. She sat in front of a small family shrine that held the thin tanto, its blade a dull gleam in the moonlight.

"_**Why is it struggling?"**_

"_**One of its wings is broken"**_

Her gaze remained fixed on the steel before her. She could hear the muffled noise of footsteps circling the perimeter of the building. They were coming; they were here to end her life. At age thirty-two she was going to die.

"_**Can't we help it?"**_

"_**No. Its fate has already been determined. This is its final dance… a dance of death."**_

She was the bird, stretching her white clad arms forward with unseen hands. Wings fluttering erratically she brushed feathery touches against the blade before firmly grasping it. Lost under the voluminous folds of her sleeves she perched between two worlds, a test of her quiet strength, her decision to forgo such fleshly realms. Craning her neck forward she could hear the predators. The footsteps were growing closer.

"**See how it stretches its wing to the sky…"**

Their muffled voices becoming tangible whispers from the shadows. Urging her flight onwards. All had bee lost, her body was nothing more than an empty shell. Extending her wings forward she teetered helplessly between indecision, grounded against ever soaring the sky again. There was nothing left.

"…_**its soul has already flown away. It is trying to catch it…"**_

She could feel the pressure of the blade against the gentle swell of her breast, its presence warm and comforting. She would hold her fate with the tenderness of a lover. She would not be afraid.

"…_**trying to reach it."**_

With a small smile she enfolded the dagger into a desperate embrace, comforted in the knowledge that her task was done. With a fluid grace that only death could give she turned her face towards the opening shoji door.

"The bird doesn't know…" 

The shadows danced closer, their eyes illuminated with rage. "Tell Reijirou…" she slumped forward "…that his revenge has failed." Broken, she crumpled to the floor, her shattered wing limply grasping the dagger.

"…_**its already dead."**_

--

Kurosawa Noboru glared reproachfully at the dead woman in the room before him. Her once pristine white kimono was rapidly becoming soaked in crimson liquid that continued to spread away from the hilt of the tanto embedded in her heart. Her navy obi covered with white cranes lay discarded by her crumpled form. She must have taken it off before she committed suicide. He was no fool. She was wearing funeral garb.

"Fuck." He cursed bitterly. Noboru knew he was in deep shit. Reijirou had wanted to make an example out of this woman, a woman who was the last of the noble bloodline Masanori. Noboru hadn't gotten here fast enough. The wench had already seen what was coming and had chosen death instead. Reijirou was going to kill him for this, if Daisuke didn't kill him first.

"Masanori Haruhime you bitch." He spat at the dead noblewoman.

"Should we finish the ritual for her?" A stocky man in his mid thirties addressed Noboru.

Noboru snorted. "I would honor a beggar's committing seppuku before I would that wench. Don't even bother to slit her throat. The whore doesn't deserve an honorable death"

Turning from his companion Noboru begin ordering those around him. They still had to drag Haruhime's carcass back to Reijirou before daybreak.

_Damn it!_ He swore to himself _Nothing is going as planed._

--

Sanosuke felt like shit.

The very road before him seemed rise and fall with unseen breathes, leaving the former Sekihoutai member grasping for handholds in the air.

Leaning into the frame of the narrow housing unit he peered blindly into the blackened street before him, the shallow wheezing of his lungs the only sound in the stillness.

_Four more houses down. Fuck. I'm not going to make it._

Since when had his luck turned sour? Lurching forward, Segara Sanosuke attempted to make his way across the ever-shifting street.

He had been gambling at the Kuroiwa, determined to test whether Fortune's benevolence was bestowed more freely in Kyoto. For a while he actually believed his deduction to be correct. To say he experienced sheer euphoria in the Kuroiwa would be an understatement. In the smoky haze of the gambling hall the dice seemed to be cast in a never-ending succession of high throws. Guzzling sake he remembered the laughter, the red faces, and most importantly the money. He was invincible, untouched by the allotment of fate, jovial to a point that bordered on sheer lunacy.

He hated when people screwed with him.

He grasped the doorframe of the house he had been searching for, attempting to suppress the feeling of relief as he caught sight of the soft illumination of a lamp that promised his favorite doctor was within.

"Oi! Are you going to show your kitsune face or do I have to break the door down?!" Sano slurred gruffly as he felt his chest constrict tightly.

He couldn't breathe.

The voice of the "fox" woman snapped irritably from the shadows as the door was yanked roughly open. "Just what do you think you're doing in Kyoto you dumb tori-ama! Did you come here just to an…" Megumi started when she caught sight of the man before her. "Sano… you've been drugged!"

"Tell me something I don't know." Sanosuke rasped painfully before collapsing.

--

The dim lighting in the room made Getsu Shohei's eyes ach with a delicate throb. Drumming his fingers softly against his forehead, he continued to pour over the record books before him.

When he had offered his services to keep the accounts and records in order and make sure no one was trying to pull a fast one over Reijirou's numerous finances he had never imagined he would have been taken up on such an offer. After all, he was only nineteen and fairly new to this specific enterprise of the Kaientai.

He was beginning to regret making that offer.

How was he to know there would be this much late night reading? Despite his pride at being selected for such an important task, reading in such poor lighting conditions could hardly be good for him. He suspected his eyesight was going. Still, regardless of the lack adequate lighting he wasn't mistaken on what he had just read.

The implications were staggering.

Quickly scanning the line again he inhaled sharply. No, there was no mistake. Shocked at what he had unknowingly uncovered, he gently traced his fingers over the offending kanji.

Shanghai 

"Someone is going to lose their life for this." Shohei murmured softly.

"Unfortunately, that someone is you."

Shohei reared back as if bitten. How had he not noticed Iwao's entrance into the room?

"Higashido-san…" panic seeped into his voice "I did not hear you enter."

Higashido Iwao's only response was to step forward, the candlelight glinting off the daisho firmly secured to his hakama.

"You know Reijirou will kill you for hiding this." Shohei's long tapered fingers clutched the offending piece of paper to his breast. "You are being used!" He hissed.

Within one swift motion Shohei suddenly found himself staring blankly at the wakizashi embedded in his throat. Opening his lips in surprise a sobbing gurgle escaped his mouth before limply slumping over.

Retrieving his wakizashi from the dead boy's throat Iwao cleaned the blade with a snap of his wrist before responding blankly.

"It's too late now."

--

The road to the west of Kyoto was deserted. The bustling hubbub of those entering and leaving the city was absent in the hanging air. The figures of travelers and the imprints of their sandals carved in the dust had all faded away in the dying light. Only the tall silhouette of a man was left, a dark bruise steadily moving against the now paling sky.

The Oniwabanshuu's Okashira had returned to Kyoto.

After being absent from the Aoiya for over a week, Shinomori Aoshi had finally left the secluded shrine nestled in the mountains he frequented to meditate in. Aware of his duties to the rest of the Oniwabanshuu, Aoshi never lingered to long away from his surrogate family. After all, Kyoto was a dangerous place.

Taking long decisive strides, Aoshi's face remained emotionless as he continued down the dusty road. To the casual observer, his countenance was utterly unreadable, masking whatever thoughts played through his mind.

There were, however, those who could read such masks.

"Thinking of the Aoiya, Shinomori-san?"

If Aoshi had been startled by the question he did not show it. His cool countenance in place, Aoshi merely grunted at the youth who seemed to have melted from the shadows.

"They say that Battousai broke you." Aoshi stated.

"I could say the same of you, Shinomori-san."

"You could." Aoshi let his gaze flicker over towards the young man now walking beside him. "You seem different."

"Himura-san has that affect on people." The youth's face contorted into a twisted ruminate of a smile that could only be described as grotesque. "Sometimes I contemplate whether it is for the best."

"You wish to see him" his declaration a stated fact rather than a question.

"Yes"

"He is at the Aoiya with the others."

The youth walking beside him merely nodded.

Aoshi's stoic expression never wavered. He regarded the young man before him with a critical eye, contemplating his tormented form. The very smile that had always before masked the boy's features was disfigured, spread thinly across his face in a taunt line. Seta Soujirou, the tormented Tenkan was truly broken.

"You may come with me."

It was only then, at that instant, that a flicker a genuine smile traced the contours of the boy's face.

--

::hypnosis voice:: You want to leave a review…you will leave a review…you love my fanfic…

Author's Notes: I, as previously stated don't own the Kenshin-gumi. However, I do own Masanori Haruhime, Kurosawa Noboru, Naosawa Daisuke, Getsu Shohei, Higashido Iwao and Takechi Reijirou. This story will adhere to the Rurouni Kenshin cannon and is placed somewhere between the end of the Kyoto arch and the beginning of the Revenge arch. I have tried to make this as historically accurate as possible and have spent at least four months on background research. I will try to avoid Japanese words, but the words I do use (Japanese honorifics are to complicated to be translated and fully express the different levels of politeness) I will list in the glossary below. As always, R&R is greatly appreciated.

Historical Note: Noble women could also commit seppuku (ritual suicide), but this was usually done by slashing the throat with a small knife, or stabbing into the heart with a sharp hair-pin or a knife.

Glossary:

a.Sama - Can mean master, lord, or the speaker's Superior in terms of being a direct inferior/servant/rank in the military of the one being addressed.

b.San - Connotes a politeness, and mild formality, like Ms. or Mr., usually applied with acquaintances, new or otherwise.

c.Dono - Much more formal than "san". It's also Ms. or Mr., but this can connote that the one speaking is inferior to the one being addressed but not directly under his/her command.

d.Chan - Connotes familiarity. Used between friends, usually among girls. Girls can also address men this way, but then they would have to have a very personal relationship with the man, like a boyfriend, or a cousin, or a friend since childhood, or a brother, etc.

e.Kun - Men use this to address younger men, or those of lower rank to them. Men may sometimes use this to address a woman who is known to be of lower rank than him, like in the military, or a man who is the woman's mentor. Women also use this to address men/boys who are younger than them, or men/boys whom they regard affectionately.

f.Tenkan – Sword of Heaven

g.Gi and Hakama – Robe top and pants, respectively. The Samurai way.

h.Tanto - A Japanese blade or small sword. It is a smaller version of the Katana, with a blade length of about 15 - 30 cm (6" - 12").

i.Kitsune – Fox. Saitoh and Sano's nickname for Megumi.

j.tori-ama – Rooster head. Megumi's nickname for Sanosuke.

k.wakizashi - Traditional Japanese sword with a shoto blade between 12 and 24 inches (between 30 and 60 cm, with an average of 50 cm), similar to but shorter than a katana.

l.daisho - Traditional arms of the samurai, composed of katana and wakizashi.


	2. The White Crane

Disclaimer: Um…about owning Rurouni Kenshin…I'm still working on that one…

Author's Note: Firstly, I LOVE my wonderful reviewers! You guys are the best! Talk about inspiration ::does happy dance::. I've even got a beta reader now! Okay, I realize some of you may be a wee bit confused, but don't worry you're supposed to be. I planned this story out to be, among other things, an action/mystery. Also, character pairings will be cannon with a little bit of Battousai thrown in. That means you can look forward to BxKxK, SxM, and AxM. Unlike the previous chapter, this chapter will be longer than the last and you can expect somewhere around this length in chapters to come. Lastly, this chapter will be significantly lighter in mood with considerably less angst. Don't worry, the story will be more along the line of what you saw in the first chapter with darker emotional tones. However, I do need to get the plot up and rolling before all the heavy angst stuff kicks in. Enjoy!

_Italics_ character thoughts

**_Bold Italics_** past conversation being remembered

--------

Crimson Tide

Chapter 2: The White Crane

"Misao."

There was no response.

"Misao, are you sure you know where you're going?"

Still no response. Kamiya Kaoru grated her teeth at the sight of the younger girl before her who was currently doing her best to ignore Kaoru's inquires. Growling, Kaoru tried again.

"You know Misao, as much as it pains me to question the senses of an Oniwabanshuu member…I am beginning to believe you have utterly no idea where this noodle house is!"

"What?!" The girl cried in indignation. "How could you even think that?"

_Well that got her attention._ Kaoru thought wryly. "Maybe the fact that we have been wandering around Kyoto for over twenty minutes now. Honestly, I don't know how you managed to track your Aoshi down."

Makimachi Misao shot Kaoru a look that promised pain. In reality, Misao had been no closer to finding Aoshi then she had ever been before Himura Kenshin came along. Kaoru, however, did **not** need to know that.

"In matters of my Aoshi-sama, its sheer instinct. The bonds between us are so strong that nothing can separate owwwww!" Misao was forced to paused her romantic ramblings long enough to nurse her now injured foot. "That hurt, Kaoru! Besides, what do you care if the noodle house has moved?"

"It hasn't moved" Kaoru screeched while lunging at Misao. "You just can't find it!"

Misao ducked as the temperamental kenjutsu instructor took a swing at her and danced around the many stalls in order to find refuge. "It's a beautiful day. Just enjoy the scenery!"

"Misao, its almost noon and over ninety five degrees! What am I supposed to be enjoying?" Kaoru cried while trying to catch Misao despite the constriction of movement caused by her garment.

"Well maybe if you didn't wear those awful kimonos you wouldn't be so hot! How many layers does that thing have anyway?" Misao countered while dancing into a nearby narrow alley.

"Too many…" Kaoru muttered. "Besides, not all of us have Oniwabanshuu gear to wear."

"Well I could have loaned you some if you had only asked nicely." Misao chirped while ducking behind some overhanging laundry to avoid another one of Kaoru's swings.

Exhausted from her losing battle against her garment, Kaoru finally gave up and leaned wearily against the wooden frame of the building beside her.

"That still doesn't help my current kimono. It will take forever for me to wash out the sweat and dust stains"

"Why don't you get Himura to wash it?" Misao questioned, still careful to keep the drying laundry between her and Kaoru. "He's the one with the laundry fetish after all."

"Kenshin has…" Kaoru paused. "He hasn't been doing any chores lately."

"Yeah I noticed," Misao snorted, "When you said you were coming to Kyoto we offered for the Kenshin-gumi to stay at the Aoiya in hopes of getting a free house-keeper. So far we've been very disappointed." Misao concluded, coming to stand by Kaoru.

"Kenshin has allot on his mind lately." Kaoru gave Misao a halfhearted nudge. "He has…this place brings back old memories." She whispered.

"He really hates Kyoto, doesn't he?" Misao questioned.

Kaoru could only nod.

It was true. Kenshin wouldn't even be in Kyoto if not for her. She had received a legal document summoning her to Kyoto to pick up an inheritance left in a will. In reality, the inheritance was for her father, Kamiya Koshijiro, and was left by one of his old friends who had recently died. The friend apparently had not known of Kamiya Koshijiro's death years earlier and had desired to leave a piece of his estate to his fondest companion from his youth. Since Koshijiro had no successor and no remaining male relatives the inheritance was transferred to Kaoru.

The sum of money was by no means large. However, any funds were needed by Kaoru who supported Yahiko, Kenshin, and the occasional freeloading of Sanosuke. Kenshin, the eternal worrywart, insisted on his and Yahiko's escorting Kaoru to Kyoto to pick up the money despite his personal misgivings towards the city. Unfortunately, in the transaction process, the bank housing the records and will had burnt down in a recent fire. This caused considerable delays and only heightened the dispute amidst the bickering of the deceased man's kin who opposed any portion of the estate going to a single female kenjustsu instructor who was boarding the former Hitokiri Battousai. Needless to say, the extended stay in Kyoto had put immense strain on Kenshin.

"No…well maybe…"

Kaoru sighed and redirected her attention to Misao who seemed to be rambling on about something.

"Kaoru," Misao flashed the girl one of her brightest smiles. "I think we should go this way."

------

_Sake._

Kenshin paused his sweeping to stare at the empty bottle lying on the lawn. It was half crusted with dirt, most likely discarded a while ago.

_Hiko always used to leave his sake bottles lying around._

Kenshin's grip on the broom tightened.

He had been meaning to see his former master.

"_**Once you have mastered the Amakakeru Ryu no Hirameki, you will never give into the hitokiri again."**_

Kenshin could feel him stirring underneath the surface of his conscientiousness. His presence had only grown stronger over the past months. The extended stay at Kyoto had only made things worse.

Kenshin had mastered the Hiten Mitsurugi's ultimate succession technique.

But the Battousai still remained.

_Why haven't you gone?_

Kenshin rubbed his temples in agitation. He had acknowledged the fact that he needed to see his Shishou as soon as he had arrived in Kyoto. But he couldn't bring himself to do it.

_Fear._

Kenshin sighed heavily. He was afraid. Possibly more so than he had been in years. He was afraid of what his Shishou might tell him. Afraid that the Battousai would no longer emerge in battle but his presence would haunt his every-day life. Afraid that the Battousai was no longer a mere manifestation of his bloodlust side, but a part of him that had matured as a separate personality over the years.

Afraid of what the Battousai wanted.

Kenshin was not blind. Lately, the biggest struggles, the incidents where Kenshin had to fight the hardest to keep the Battousai submerged, always occurred in the presence of one common factor.

One common person, to be specific.

His grip on the broom tightened considerably. Kenshin resumed his sweeping…

…his thoughts turning to the scent of jasmine.

------

A smoky haze filled the small room. Slender slits of light fell between the wall's sidings but failed to cast any sufficient light on the room's elderly occupant. Seigawa Toshiro sat behind a Western style desk cluttered with papers and chewed absently at the cigarette caught between his lips. Utterly absorbed in his thoughts, he failed to hear the first knock and only responded when a muffled voice sounded from behind the door.

"Come in." Toshiro's horse voice resounded.

"Sir." A tall man with dark features entered the room. His face lay impassive underneath the hood of his oversized forehead and gaunt cheekbone shadowed his sides. At his waist hung a wakizashi and katana.

"Iwao." Toshiro did not bother to look up at the man.

"Sir, we have had a mishap."

Toshiro still did not direct his gaze towards Higashido Iwao. "And?"

"It has been taken care of."

"That is good." A puff of smoke rose towards the ceiling. "What happened?"

"An accountant, one of the new ones, found a discrepancy in the records." Iwao strained to see the reaction of his boss. Failing in the dim light, he continued. "I am sure he would have alerted Reijirou immediately."

Toshiro glanced up. "Did he?"

"No. I disposed of him."

"That's what I like about you, Iwao." Toshiro said in a gruff chuckle. "You're fast."

"Speed had nothing to do with it." Iwao responded darkly "I received a letter from several of the sailors complaining about not being reimbursed. They had purposely entered their expenses into the accounting books to circumvent it from happening again. I tracked down the books just as Getsu was reading them."

"Getsu, huh? I haven't heard of him." Toshiro leaned forward in sudden agitation. "Anyway, how the hell did the ship crew not get paid?"

Iwao merely shrugged. "I'm guessing the payment transactions got lost in the bank fire."

"So our actions have consequences do they" Toshiro murmured, regaining his previous calm demeanor. Leaning back in the oversized chair he let a slight smile trace his lips. "What would you suggest now?"

"Sir," Iwao shifted slightly. "I am sure you already have a plan."

"I do." Toshiro's face crinkled as his expression exuded benevolence. "But I do not hire the empty headed. I select those with intellect. My employers are an extension of both my fist and mind. Surely you can not fault me for asking your opinion?"

The old man's words were warm and lulling. In that moment, Toshiro seemed nothing more than a frail old man asking the opinion of his dearest companion.

_He's testing me._

Iwao inwardly smiled at the thought. Toshiro did not need to test him on such matters. Toshiro always had and would have a way of wielding power. And information **was **power. Only a fool would withhold what he knew from the old man.

"Sir, I would make sure all the accountants are my subordinates."

Toshiro arched a delicate eyebrow, "Aren't they?"

"Almost. Getsu Shohei was one of Reijirou's hand picks. He was a fluke that we had our eye one anyway. But," Iwao paused as his massive brows furrowed. "There is another."

"One of Reijirou's hand picked flunkies?"

"I'm not sure."

The benevolent old man was gone. Before Iwao sat a hardened businessman with a contemplative gleam in his eye. Iwao had a sneaking suspicion that Toshiro already knew all this.

"So we have a little sparrow, do we?"

"Possibly," Iwao felt reluctant to give a definite answer when he was still unsure himself. "The information is still unclear."

The papers were flung from the desk in a violent motion from Toshiro's fist. The resounding crash of the lamp that had been so callously swept aside rang unnaturally loud in Iwao's ears. Toshiro's words echoed in the following stillness.

"Clip the bird's wings."

------

For once in her life, Makimachi Misao was actually considering the possibility that she may have been wrong. After creating a few short cuts she seemed no closer to finding that blasted noodle-house than she had been that morning. Currently she and Kaoru were wandering through a back alley behind several shops and, due to the dirty look of the place, she was sure they were in a disreputable part of town.

Misao shook her head. Being in such a seedy area was beginning to make her nervous.

Or maybe the sounds of Kaoru beginning to growl behind her had more to do with it.

"Misao…" Kaoru's voice had taken on a tone that promised pain and lots of it.

Misao was about to turn and flash Kaoru one of her winning smiles when she stopped suddenly. 

"If we don't find that noodle-house soon kami-sama help me I'll-ack!" Busy seething, Kaoru slammed into Misao's no-longer moving frame.

"Kaoru!" Misao cried. "Do you smell that?"

"I'LL KILL YOU!" A very irate Kaoru lunged for Misao's throat.

"The noodles!" Misao cried while trying to avoid being throttled. "Kaoru, I smell the noodles being cooked!"

Kaoru paused, "Are you sure?"

"Yes!" Misao took an experimental sniff. "Yes I'm sure! They have to be! Only one person in Kyoto makes noodles that smell like that and that's Mizue!"

"Who's Mizue?" Kaoru's momentary anger disappeared at the prospect of being fed.

"Yorishima Mizue is the owner and chief of the noodle house I've been telling you about!"

"Well then lets go!" Kaoru dashed off in the general direction of the noodle house.

"Hey!" Not wanting to be outdone Misao ran after her companion. "You were the one asking dumb questions!"

"There it is! I see it!" The back of what appeared to be a restaurant came into view.

Kaoru paused and turned to Misao.

"Come on," she extended her hand. "Lets go around to the-mou!"

Misao grabbed Kaoru's hand and hurtled through the back door.

"-front." Kaoru finished.

"Mizue!" Misao exclaimed before tackling a very startled girl at a stove.

"Misao?" The girl faltered. "What are you doing here?"

"We've been looking for you all morning and we're **starving**!" Misao had still not let go of the girl.

"We…?" Mizue extracted herself from Misao's bear hug.

"Kamiya Kaoru." Kaoru bowed politely. "Pleased to meet you Yorishima-san."

"Feed us!" Misao exclaimed. "We've been looking for your restaurant all morning."

"Misao…" Mizue's face drained of all color. "Do you have any idea where you are?"

"Forgive us for intruding in on your cooking" Kaoru gave Misao a pointed look. "Misao just wanted to see you. We will go to the front of the restaurant and be seated."

"No!" Mizue grabbed Kaoru's sleeve. "Please, you have to leave!"

"But we're starving!" Misao cried.

"Please, you don't…" Mizue faltered. "Misao, you're in a brothel."

------

"Seta Soujirou." The words slipped unheeded from his lips. Formality had been momentarily forgotten by the rurouni.

"Himura-san," the Tenkan gave a deep bow. "Shinomori-san informed me of your stay here. I am truly grateful to see you again, albeit under different circumstances. There is something I must ask."

The rurouni paused his sweeping and returned the gesture. "Forgive me for my rudeness, Seta-dono. Sessha was merely sweeping the steps of the Aoiya, de gozaru ya."

"There will be an occasion when I need to speak with the Rurouni," Soujirou's features distorted slightly as his smile widened. "However, for now I wish to speak with Kenshin. There is no need for masks."

Kenshin's face was tilted downwards, the shadow of his red bangs hiding his eyes from view. "Yet yours are no different from mine."

------

_Last night he had symptoms of respiratory failure._

Takani Megumi felt a heavy weight descend on her chest.

_You've seen this before._

"Kanryu."

_Yes._

Megumi shook her head vehemently.

_Poor thing. You just can't escape the spider's web._

"Kami-sama not again." She whispered.

_And you thought you had forgotten._

Why was it now she had to remember? These feelings of self-loathing that welled up inside of her and threatened to suffocate her cool demeanor. Kanryu was the past. He should stay there.

She hadn't remembered this last night. There was no time for self-pity when Sanosuke had hovered on the verge of consciousness at her doorstep. She recognized the symptoms of an over-dose immediately, her mind taking in the blue of his lips, nails and even tongue when he drawled. The pupils of Sanosuke's had eyes dilated briefly before he began to convulse wildly. Megumi had immediately taken hold of his wrist and almost recoiled at the rapid rate of his pulse. Still convulsing he lost consciousness, his shallow breathing dying in a sputtered wheeze. She had immediately given him mouth to mouth, relieved when his constrained breathing resumed even as he remained unconscious.

He had gone into a shallow coma.

There was nothing else she could do besides keep watch over him. She had known he was drugged; the symptoms of respiratory failure were obvious. It could have been caused by a number of things, even the alcohol on his breath. But she had known.

_He said he knew._

The thought made her want to cry. Sanosuke had known what was happening. Megumi shook her head violently as the unwanted tear slipped down her cheek.

"I've never seen a kitsune cry."

Nothing could have made her regain her composure better than the sound of that feeble voice. Megumi leveled her seething glare at the now awake patient before her.

"Sagara Sanosuke," she hissed, her voice dropping dangerously "what were **you** doing taking opium."

"So that's what they put in the drink…" Sanosuke inhaled sharply as he felt the doctor's fingers snake around his neck.

"How **dare** you knowingly take opium and then come staggering to me for help!"

"I didn't know…" He gasped feeling her choke hold leave him. "…I didn't know they had drugged me until it was too late…"

------

Kaoru wasn't sure whether to hug Misao or strangle her.

On one hand, she had made a new friend in Mizue, and currently had the most precious child on earth on her lap. She was also eating what had to be the world's most heavenly noodles in a cool back room away from the oppressive summer heat.

On the other hand, the cool back room happened to be situated in the back of a brothel and her new friend Mizue happened to work in that brothel.

Misao could be very persuasive when she wanted to. For the life of her, Kaoru couldn't remember how Misao convinced her to eat in a brothel, albeit the employees-only back section of one.

_Oniwabanshuu mind tricks maybe?_

Kaoru grinned at the thought. Her hunger probable had more to do with things than any persuasion on Misao's part.

"What? But you work in the noodle house…you own the place! Why would you be in…in a brothel?"

Any lapse in the conversation on Kaoru's part was being eagerly filled by the chatty Misao. Kaoru was too busy playing with the hair of the girl in her lap, thoroughly enchanted by the unusual brown curls, to bother competing with Misao for a word in edgewise anyway.

"The noodle house burned down in the fire." Mizue appeared to be on the verge of tears. "I had borrowed money to buy the place, it was my home as well. After the fire I was homeless, in debt and without a job…"

Kaoru couldn't help but feel sympathy for Mizue. All lingering embarrassment immediately vanished.

Kaoru, the sweaty female kenjutsu instructor who has taken in the Hitokiri Battousai and adopted a pickpocket. Who am I to judge her? 

Kaoru's cheeks turned red from shame. Unconscientiously she gripped the young girl in her lap tighter. How could she have been so judgmental?

"Sachimi." A grey haired woman opened the door. "Lunch is over, Sachimi. It's time for your nap."

The little girl looked up from her spot on Kaoru's lap with wide green eyes. Smiling brightly she waved her chopsticks for emphasis.

"Not finished." She shook her curly head and pointed to Misao. "She ate all the food!"

Misao looked up with a mouth full of noodles and scowled. It was obvious that Sachimi's comment was not appreciated by Misao. Helpless to stop it, Kaoru burst out laughing.

"Maybe we should call you Buta-chan from now on!"

"Oi!" Misao jumped up. "Us Oniwabanshuu member have to keep our strength up, Tanuki-chan!"

Chaos ensued. Within seconds the two girls were bickering, Misao's chopsticks puncturing the air in animated exclamations of how she was not fat. The old woman's soft exclamations were lost under the hubbub of Kaoru's outrage over her much-hated nickname

"Who are you calling a Tanuki, Itachi-chan?!"

"Don't call me that!" Misao, whose temper if possible was shorter than Kaoru's, lunged forward.

No one expected what happened next. Within seconds, the old woman had pushed Misao against the back wall, her chest heaving as she gripped the girl's shoulders tightly.

"You're…" The old woman's voice cracked with sudden emotion. " You're a member of the Oniwabanshuu?"

A startled Misao could only nod.

"Thank kami-sama." The old woman slumped in relief, her vice-like hands falling limply to her side. A heavy silence weighed down on the room as the sudden change of atmosphere choked around its occupants.

"Ushiromi?" Mizue's voice sounded in a soft whisper. If the old woman heard her, she ignored it. It was impossible to tell if any sound had penetrated the intensity that surrounded Ushiromi.

"Please tell me…is Nenji-san still alive?"

Misao visibly paled.

"How do you know…" she inhaled sharply, "Jiya's name…"

Ushiromi's eyes darkened as her fragile frame trembled. Swaying slightly, she reached with tapered fingers and traced the contours of Misao's face.

"Child, as a member of the Oniwabanshuu…you must do me this last favor."

------

"So you have decided to become a rurouni."

Soujirou's smile twisted. "Yes."

A slight breeze rustled the shoji doors behind the two figures on the porch. The hollow cry of the wind chime the only sound between the two.

Soujirou broke the silence. "I am seeking redemption."

Kenshin turned towards the young man. "It is a long road to travel by."

Soujirou's grip around his teacup tightened. "I know."

Kenshin shifted slightly and placed his empty teacup down.

" I have yet to find mine." Kenshin sighed. "I can not offer you something I have yet to obtain."

"I did not come to seek my redemption from you."

Silence settled over the porch's occupants. The resonant cries of the wind chime had long since faded leaving a hollowness in the air.

"What did you come for?"

Soujirou lifted his eyes from the shadow of his bangs.

"A purpose."

A small smile traced Kenshin's lips. "A purpose to live."

"Yes"

"I had always lived," Kenshin's eyes meet Soujirou's, "because I was too unworthy to die."

"You lie." His knuckle tightened. "Guilt does not give you the strength to live, only to continue. You are actually –living-."

"Soujirou," Kenshin smiled warmly, "life itself is the biggest purpose…"

"Kenshin."

Kenshin looked up to find Kaoru and Misao at the gate. He cast a quick glance to Soujirou who nodded his head. The conversation would be continued later.

Kenshin's countenance flickered briefly. Soujirou's smile twisted as he watched the mask slide firmly into place, the purple eyes widening as a silly grin spread across his face. It happened in a matter of seconds, the harmless rurouni front was now standing before Soujirou, politely questioning Kaoru and Misao on the subject of lunch and smiling at their apparent enthusiasm. Soujirou remained in the shadow of the porch.

"Kaoru-dono, Misao-dono," Kenshin cleared his throat and extended a hand towards Soujirou. "…we have a guest."

Misao stiffened and reached for her kunai.

"Aoshi brought him."

Misao visibly relaxed. Above all else, she trusted her Aoshi-sama. Kaoru, not recognizing Soujirou, made a mental note to question Misao about her initial discomfort later.

"We have another guest." Kaoru bent down and tugged at the bottom of her skirt.

It was then Kenshin saw the little girl behind her, tightly clutching the folds of Kaoru's kimono.

------

A/N:

Still interested? I hope so because I'm just getting started (pulls out rather lengthy plot guide). Heheheh. I almost feel sorry for the Kenshin-gumi…

As always, please hit that review button as hard as you can! Remember, nothing cures a lazy writer's procrastination like a good review!

Glossary:

a.Buta-chan – Buta is Japanese for pig. So Buta-chan is essentially calling Misao pig girl instead of weasel girl.

b.Tanuki-chan – Raccoon girl. Saitoh, the bestower of nicknames in Rurouni Kenshin, was the first to call Kaoru this. Understandably, Kaoru doesn't appreciate being compared to a Raccoon (actually, a Tanuki is a raccoon dog, but all the translations call her raccoon girl).

c.Itachi-chan – Weasel girl. Once again, Saitoh thought this one up and Misao hates it when people use it. Maybe that's why everyone in RK hates his/her nicknames. After all, if Saitoh thinks up the name it can't be nice.

d.Sessha – This unworthy one. Sessha is Kenshin's way of saying I in RK. Irritating yes (Kenshin is anything but unworthy), but its one of Kenshin's trademark Rurouni expressions. Personally I prefer the masculine 'ore' that the Battousai uses.

d.De gozaru ka/yo/ya - Kenshin tacks on this polite and very formal inflection ending all the time. Almost impossible to translate, the closest counterpart is 'that it is'. 'Ka' is used when it's a question, 'Yo' when it is a statement that needs emphasis, and 'Ya' when it is merely a statement. Sometimes, he just goes with 'de gozaru' (that's Kenshin for you, always tripping you up). It was common to samurai and ninja, because they usually serve masters, and it's a very archaic form of 'de gozaimasu'. In the RK series, Kenshin is the only one who uses it because he's so cool no one cares if his speech is in a time warp. Now if Saitoh said 'de gozaru' we'd all be seriously disturbed…

e.Sama - Can mean master, lord, or the speaker's Superior in terms of being a direct inferior/servant/rank in the military of the one being addressed.

f.San - Connotes a politeness, and mild formality, like Ms. or Mr., usually applied with acquaintances, new or otherwise.

g.Dono - Much more formal than "san". It's also Ms. or Mr., but this can connote that the one speaking is inferior to the one being addressed but not directly under his/her command. Kenshin is really the only one who uses this because he has an inferiority complex. Hehehe…

h.Chan - Connotes familiarity. Used between friends, usually among girls. Girls can also address men this way, but then they would have to have a very personal relationship with the man, like a boyfriend, or a cousin, or a friend since childhood, or a brother, etc.


	3. Calm Before The Storm

Disclaimer: sigh It not that I don't want to own Rurouni

Author's Note: **I AM SO SORRY!** I really did have this chapter written much earlier, but the fates were against me! I had to get my laptop repaired (my logic board croaked) and in the process they replaced my hard drive. After an excruciatingly long period of laptop depravation I got my baby back and, to my utter horror, EVERYTHING was gone! I lost a good twenty pages. This is actually only half of the deceased chapter but I wanted to post it as soon as possible. Also, sorry for any grammatical errors but my beta and I are currently having minor issues :glares at Erin:. I'm seeing about getting a new one so just ignore any errors in this chapter for the time being.

_Italics_ character thoughts

**_Bold Italics_** past conversation being remembered

llllllllllllllll my creative break lines (QuickEdit hates me)

Crimson Tide

Chapter 3: Calm Before The Storm

Sanosuke grunted irritably. If he had to spend one more minute in Megumi's clinic he would break something. Sanosuke was known for many things. Patience was not one of them.

"Oi, kitsune! How long do you planning on keeping me here!"

Megumi dipped her hands in a water basin and scrubbed vigorously, washing off an ocher herbal residue that coated her skin. Finished, she pressed her hands against her pristine apron and then raised them for an inspection.

"Megumi," Sano hissed. "I'm getting tired of this game."

Megumi merely frowned at her hands. The herbal balm had stained them yellow.

"Damn it woman, I'm talking to you!"

Megumi raised a yellow hand to tuck back a stray wisp of hair that had escaped from her makeshift bun. Arching a delicate eyebrow, she merely gave her trademark fox smile.

"Sano, I suggest you relax. You're probably going to be here for a while."

"How much fucking paralysis powder DO YOU HAVE?"

"More than you can image, Tori-ama."

"Oi! Where are you going? Get back here!"

Megumi let out her trademark cackle before shutting the door. She couldn't let Sanosuke's temper tantrum disturb her other patients now, could she?

In truth, Sanosuke's outrage was somewhat appropriate. It had been two days since the night he had come staggering, half dead, to the clininc's door. Sanosuke had healed since then, but Megumi refused to let him check out.

_It's not as if you aren't justified. You know what he would do._

Megumi nodded in affirmation. She did know what he would do. Sanosuke had been kind enough to announce his plans to her in a doped slur. He had loudly proclaimed that he would Futae no Kiwami a certain gambling house to hell and back. Needless to say, at the time he was in no state to carry out such a threat and Megumi did what any reasonable doctor would do…she drugged him.

Of course, that was yesterday. Sanosuke was more than healed to smash whatever he wanted. That is, if he could move.

Megumi was no fool. Especially when it came to opium.

She knew from personal experience that when came to drug rings, anything uncovered was only the tip of the iceberg. Whoever drugged Sanosuke had a web that ran far deeper than some puny gambling house and any rash action on the Zanza's part would only kill the stem of the weed, not the roots.

_Try telling the Tori-ama that._

Megumi did not plan on telling Sanosuke. At least not yet. She would continue to drug him. She had already contacted the Oniwabanshuu. They would be here soon.

Of all people, Aoshi knew of her history with Kanryu.

Whoever was in charge of this, wherever they were…she would bring them down

This would be her redemption.

llllllllllllllll

"One bowl of plain hot soba? That's a pretty miserable lunch isn't it, Saitou-san."

Hajime Saitou broke his chopsticks apart with a clean snap. The sound ringing clearly in the darkened recess of the dingy restaurant.

"I've been told that before." Saitou's chopsticks vanished under a steaming mass of thick buckwheat noodles. "I like plain hot soba. And right now, the name is Fujita."

The youth sighed and slid in the opposite seat. The initiation into the police force never included the fact he might one day be paired with one of Mibu's most brooding wolves.

"Fujita it is." The young man began scanning the menu. Resigning himself to his fate, he attempted to lighten the already oppressive mood. "Perhaps I should get an alias."

The taller officer gave an audible snort.

"No need. No one knows the name Iwasaki Osamu." Saitou raised the bowl and drank deeply. "The soba is excellent."

"I'm afraid I don't share your appreciation of soba." Osamu's placed the menu down and messaged his temple. "Sake?"

"I'm afraid I don't share your appreciation of sake," A wolfish glint appeared in Saitou's eyes. "Or at least not in a manner condoned by the Meiji era."

Osamu stared at the pragmatic man quietly eating his soba. There was and always would be an unnerving quality to Saitou Hajime. The Shinsengumi's third division captain was an anachronism in the Meiji era, a part of Edo that did not belong.

"What do you have?"

Osamu repressed the urge to sigh. He had no earthly idea how Toki dealt with this man. Saitou really had no need for his trademark sarcasm; his apparent apathy in conversations was insulting enough.

"I have made copies of several arms shipping transactions." Osamu slid a folder across the table. "Most are from Nagasaki."

Osamu waited for a response from Saitou. Meet with only silence, he decided to continue. Clearing his throat, the young officer attempted to keep his voice level.

"The firearms transactions are well recorded. No inconsistencies in the accounts. It's the opium profits that bother me."

Osamu paused again for Saitou.

The wolf merely nodded for him to continue, the glint of his eyes trained sharply on the novice before him.

llllllllllllllll

"You mean to tell me it's not done?"

A heavy tension lay thick over the occupants of Takechi Reijirou's office. The rice paper walls, simple in the traditional style, quivered slightly as if unable to hold the tension that seethed with in. Three men occupied the room, one of which demonstrated extreme discomfort at being under Reijirou's scathing glare. Only one man maintained a uniform calm. A fact which could be attributed to his being the only one in the room not under interrogation.

Kurosawa Noboru cleared his throat delicately. "Takechi-sama, the second target was not there."

"Why?" Reijirou stated coolly.

Noboru gripped his knuckles with an audible crack. Reijirou, while normally a strong and charismatic leader possessed a notorious temper. Noboru never knew what would set the man off.

"Haruhime most likely expected an attack on her life," Noboru inhaled sharply. "And hid those closest to her."

Reijirou turned suddently. Gripping the sides of the low table, Noboru's face was obscured by his bangs as he tilted his head downwards. To say he was scared would be an understatement

"Kurosawa," Reijirou's voice was flat and betrayed nothing. "I do not accept failure. Find and eliminate the target."

Noboru exhaled audible. He had been given a second chance, which was more than most were given. Noboru wasn't sure how, but his failure had not incurred Reijirou's wrath.

Bowing politely, Noboru exited the room while he still could.

"Now," Reijirou turned his attention to the remaining one. "We have matters to discuss."

llllllllllllllll

_Stupid._

Hajime Saitou's eye's darkened as they followed the officer's retreating form. Iwasaki Osamu, a young idealistic man who believed in the bright ideals of the Meiji government.

_Foolish._

They were the new generation. The optimistic youth who trusted in all sincerity the abundance promised in the deemed golden age. Dazed infants blinded by the ideology of the institution, rendered dumb by their need to trust and rely on something greater than themselves. This was the generation that believed in the ability of change. The ability for people to change.

_Naïve._

This was the Rurouni's age. An age that believed that reality is what one makes of it; that the surrounding world is only the story told by each other. That truth can change. A generation that passed off the harsher functions of justice embodied in the katana.

_People never change._

Saitou smiled.

Governments were inescapably corrupt. Humans were inherently selfish. Strife was not something that could not be displaced by new ideology.

_Aku, Soku, Zan._

People had just changed their perception of truth. Reality itself had not changed. Iwasaki Osamu would find that out soon enough.

"_**We don't have enough information. The Kaientai is funding something and I intend to find out." The young undercover agent stood up to leave. "An accountant just died under auspicious circumstances. I intend to take his place."**_

"_**I have no time for idiots." Saitou's eyes creased in upward crescent moons as he smiled. "Just remember, your impatience will get you killed."**_

llllllllllllllll

Kaoru watched Soujirou warily as she deftly fingered the hem of her yukata.

_So this is the Tenken._

She had heard stories from Sanosuke, mainly when he was drunk, of this young man. Misao had only built on these stories, less elaborate than Sanosuke's drunken ramblings but impressive nonetheless. Soujirou was Shishio's best. Soujirou was a demon, a smiling child who broke Kenshin's Sakabatou. Soujirou was faster than Kenshin, had almost killed him.

Kaoru hands twisted the hapless material harder.

Watching Soujirou flash across the yard, she understood everything she had been told. Kenshin also blurred by, disappearing and reappearing to strike and block with fluid thrusts.

"Leave the yukata alone, Busu. It doesn't look that awful on you."

Yahiko plopped down on the porch beside her, giving the now torn hem of her sleeve a peculiar expression before turning his gaze to his sparing idol. Getting to watch Kenshin spar was a rare occurrence. The Rurouni seemed more inclined to do the laundry than to brush up on his Hiten Misurugi.

Although maybe being an assassin at fourteen was all the practice one needed.

"I'm sorry about today's training, Yahiko."

Kaoru couldn't help but feel slightly guilty. When Soujirou had approached Kenshin about using his skills as a swordsman to protect life, Kaoru was all to eager to help. Not surprisingly Kenshin, the eternal worrywart, would not hear of Kaoru sparing with the Tenkan. He did suggest, however, that Kaoru monitor the sparing match and suggest any ways in which the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu could be implemented into Soujirou's form. She had completely forgotten about Yahiko.

Of course, judging by the way Yahiko was watching Kenshin, missing practice was not the foremost thing on the boy's mind.

"We can train tonight in order to catch up…"

There was no response from Yahiko.

For some reason Kaoru found something distinctly unnerving in the way the boy did not answer her.

"If that doesn't work," She continued, "We could always extend tomorrow's practice a few hours…"

Kaoru waited for some response from Yahiko, distantly noting that his ignoring her had failed to spark her temper but instead made something in her stomach twist. Hinging on a response that did not seem forthcoming, Kaoru nudged her student.

"Are you even listening?"

"I'm trying not too!" Yahiko swatted Kaoru's prodding hand away. "Can't you see I'm doing something more important?"

The familiar swell of warmth that accompanied Kaoru's temper flushed through her veins. Any unease that had gnawed at the kenjutsu instructor before was submerged under the sudden bout of warmth that begged for Kaoru to pull out a bokken and beat Yahiko into oblivion.

"What could be more important than your own training?"

Yahiko suddently turned and gave Kaoru a look of impatience that only agitated whatever was bothering her more.

"You don't get it do you?" The boy rolled his eyes. "You can't teach me what I'm learning by watching them."

Yahiko, in turning back to watching his idol spar, failed to see the way his teacher paled at his last comment.

llllllllllllllll

A doctor was trained in resolve.

A level head and steady hand were necessary in such a precarious profession. Lives hung in the balance. Panic was not allowed.

Megumi called on that resolve now.

The Western clock adorned the wall behind Aoshi. The shiny lacquer of the case housing the swinging pendulum that kept the time with even sounds. Constant in its markers, the jarring tick of the seconds amplified in volume like approaching footsteps. Megumi's hands quivered as she fought from shaking.

How long had it been since Kanryu's estate? When was the threshold to freedom crossed? When had Aoshi stopped being her captor?

Megumi trembled. She did not think she could look at this man any other way but with fear. Kanryu was dead. Aoshi had no reason to threaten her, to hurt her. She had long since been free. But Aoshi still terrified her in a way no other could.

Megumi felt like screaming. Seconds seemed to languidly stretch into infinite hours. She had no concept of how long she had been sitting across form the stoic man. All she could feel was the innate fear of him. A fear founded on a past that haunted her present.

"The Oniwabanshuu will look into this."

Megumi closed her eyes in relief at his statement.

She felt like crying.

llllllllllllllll

The day continued with unprecedented weather, the temperature reaching heights that had not been seen in years. The air simmered in the heavy heat. The oppressive heat weighing heavy on the occupants of Kyoto, draining their energy and leaving them listless in the sweltering weather. To hot to function, the hustle and bustle of the city had retreated indoors for cooler temperatures and left the streets empty.

In the yard of the Aoiya, Okina lay reclined against a gnarled tree truck. Shifting slightly, the old man paused at the loudness of his movements in the heavy silence.

Okina frowned. There was a foreboding quality to the unnatural stillness in the air.

"The calm before the storm…" he murmured softly.

llllllllllllllll

A/N:

Just be patient with me! I promise things will get back on the track of murder and mayhem soon enough!

Sorry there wasn't nearly as much Kenshin in this portion of the chapter but don't worry, the focus of things is going to shift to our favorite redhead soon enough (let him enjoy the peace while he still can). Sorry for those of you who have been enjoying the Sano Megumi screen time but the rest of the Kenshin-gumi is getting impatient (S&M are already in this mess, now its time to suck the rest of the characters in). Hmphhh! The Kenshin-gumi aren't the only ones getting impatient. I want to skip straight to the meaty stuff! This is the problem with having plots. You actually have to lay story foundations before you can write about all the exciting stuff! What on earth possessed me to incorporate a plot in this story is beyond me.

As always, please hit that review button as hard as you can! Remember, nothing cures a lazy writer's procrastination like a good review!

Glossary:

Kitsune – Fox. Saitou and Sano's nickname for Megumi.

Tori-ama – Rooster head. Megumi's nickname for Sanosuke.

Soba - Thin brown buckwheat noodles, usually cooked and served with various toppings and condiments. One of Saitou's favorite foods . Kudos to anyone who recognized the opening line of Saitou's restaurant scene.

Aku Soku Zan – Kill evil instantly, slay evil immediately, ect. I shouldn't even have to list that one.

Tenken – Sword of Heaven

Busu – Ugly/Hag. Yahiko's manner of insult- er addressing Kaoru.

Bokken – Japanese wooden sword


	4. Conversations

Disclaimer: I admit it. I have Kenshin locked in my bedroom. But don't sue! If you're nice, I might let you play with him for a while.

Author's Note: Believe it or not, chapter was done a while ago. However, because I was extremely unsatisfied I tried revamping the whole thing. Unfortunately, in the midst of final projects, final exams, graduations, friends and parties this got shoved to the bottom of my to-do list. After much revision I realized I had only made things worse and decided to go back to the original version. So basically I wasted time on revisions that I hated. Blah. Bing a perfectionist stinks. The up side of things is… I AM FREE! High school is done forever and summer is officially underway. Now that I have school, partying, and friends who missed me out of the way I can actually write! Even better, due to reasons listed in the author's note (which I know you all read) the next chapter is now over half done and should be out soon. So, all in all please forgive the authoress for the inexcusably long delay and expect more frequent updates.

_Italics_ character thoughts

**_Bold Italics_** past conversation being remembered

llllllllllllllll my creative break lines (QuickEdit hates me)

llllllllllllllll

Crimson Tide

Chapter 4: Conversations

"Is there anything else we need?" Misao turned towards her friend, her mood hovering between expectation and concern.

Kaoru frowned as she rubbed the worn edges of the once crisp shopping list. The little slip of paper had long since succumbed to its holder's fingers and had been reduced to soft paper, its creases lining the hurried scrawl.

"No, I don't think so." Kaoru's voice was barely audible, her response more a statement than an affirmation to her companion's inquiry.

Misao repressed the urge to roll her eyes and turned to pay the vender. So far her adventures in the realms of cheering up Kaoru's strange mood had failed. Scratch that. Not just failed, but utterly failed by falling flat repeatedly. Misao grabbed her bags without bothering to check her change. She had had more lively conversations with her Aoshi before. Well, maybe not Aoshi, but somewhere close on the distant conversationalist spectrum.

Normally Misao would have graced Kaoru with her –ultra-genki-girl- transformation; Misao's first and last resort for brightening any dour persona. However, something about Kaoru's current mood had Misao hesitating, an action the young girl had virtually no previous experience with. Even the small hyper ball of inner advice within Misao was reluctant to shower Kaoru with a chipper display of energy. Something about Kaoru seemed so off. So…

_Unbalanced?_

Misao nodded her head. Kaoru did seem unbalanced. Something had seriously bothered the girl and anything was libel to set her off.

Which is why the sight of a familiar figure made Misao groan.

_We're doomed._

llllllllllllllll

Kamiya Kaoru had always been aware of her temper.

It was a nasty trait she possessed. An easy irritability she wasn't sure whether or not to blame on her father's genetics or the mere lack of female role models in her life.

Or maybe it was life in general that was irritating.

Regardless, her temper had always been there, a flush of anger that lurked beneath the surface of her sunny persona. It was familiar, a guarantied reaction to the things in life that were sure to bug her.

Which was why Kaoru felt so confused.

When Yahiko had insulted her, had insulted the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu and the legacy she had tried so hard to preserve, she hadn't felt anger. Only emptiness. An overwhelming since of poignancy had swept over her, leaving her hollow and alone. There was something in Yahiko's words that had stuck with her, had pierced something deep within her. And yet, in her own bewilderment, she couldn't grasp what it was that bothered her so. What had left her bereft and wondering in a daze in the market hours latter.

Which was why Kaoru wasn't looking where she was going.

"I was not aware tanukis were hard of sight as well as hearing."

Kaoru raised her eyes to the tall figure she had apparently slammed into. Still lost amidst the haze in her mind, she could only utter an unintelligible 'huh'.

"I said move out of the way." Saitou snorted at the sight of the dazed woman.

In retrospect, Kaoru wasn't sure what set her off. Maybe it was the condescending manner in which Saitou spoke to her, or maybe the sneer that accompanied the word 'move'. Regardless, something within her snapped and Kaoru felt more than saw her fist lash out towards the officer.

"Don't waste my time." Saitou had easily caught her fist and twisted it somewhat cruelly.

"Take me seriously!" It was more a statement made in desperation than a command.

"Run back to your man, little girl." Saitou released her fist and sent Kaoru sprawling into Misao.

It was then, with frightening clarity, that Kaoru understood the meaning of Yahiko's callous words. The meaning of what she, her dojo, and the Kamiya Kasshin Ryu were. Kaoru's breath caught at the stabbing pain that lanced through her body.

A pain that lanced through everything she had ever believed in.

llllllllllllllll

"Misao."

Misao cast a weary eye at the girl who had been silent throughout the walk back to the Aoiya. Something had changed after the encounter with Saitou. Something as puzzling to her as Kaoru's previous mood before the officer had appeared.

"Yeah."

Sometimes Misao cursed her inability to read others. This whole day had sucked so far. A day laced with depressing overtones was not Misao's cup of tea, so to speak.

"I want to become stronger."

Misao turned her startled gaze to Kaoru.

Something had definitely changed.

llllllllllllllll

Kenshin couldn't help but let a smile trace his features. Water was a wonderful thing. Cold water was even better. Cold water after a sparring session was beyond description.

Kenshin passed the basin to his silent partner, repressing a wince as his muscles protested. Sparring with Soujirou proved to be a workout that rivaled the conditioning that his Shishou used to give him. The session had resulted in several kinks in muscles that groaned from neglect. Kenshin was by no means out of shape, but Soujirou's speed was trying on even the best of warriors.

Doing laundry wasn't the best way to maintain a top fitting physique either.

"We have a visitor."

Kenshin nodded. He had also felt the ki of the green-eyed child behind the sliding door. He had not seen the child since her arrival, but rather felt her presence as she tiptoed around the house. The warm smile she had exhibited seemed only for Kaoru and Misao, the presence of others making her uneasy.

"She won't come out" Kenshin turned only to see her startled gaze recede behind the crack of the sliding door. "Sessha believes she not to found of males."

Something flickered briefly in Soujirou's face.

"What was her name again?"

"Sachimi." Kenshin smiled. "It means happy beauty if Sessha is not mistaken, de gozaru ya."

Again, that look from Soujirou. Something about the way he was watching him was disconcerting.

"She seems frightened, not happy." Kenshin was discovering Soujirou had moments of remarkable perception.

"Well we aren't a reassuring sight right now." Kenshin chuckled warmly and gestured to their clothes. "With all the dirt and grime Sessha is surprised she recognized us a human. We had better change, although Sessha would be lying if he said he looked forward to washing these grass stains out, de gozaru ya. "

"You do laundry?" Soujirou reared up in surprised.

"Sessha does not mind helping where help is needed."

"So it is true." Soujirou's voice rose sharply. "How?"

Kenshin frowned. He had a feeling Soujirou wasn't asking about the laundry.

"How what?" The rurouni's voice had lost most of its warmth.

Soujirou cocked his head to the side and laughed in delight, the hoarse sound harsh against his crooked grin.

"How did you separate from him…?" Soujirou's voice dropped. "Your other half."

Kenshin breathed in harshly, his eyes narrowing at the youth before him. He recognized the look now; the intense interest that gleamed behind Soujirou's eyes, his suppressed excitement.

_He doesn't plan too…_

"Why do you want to know?" Kenshin hissed.

"Always," Soujirou brought his hand up over his heart "it hurts."

"It will always hurt." Kenshin frowned. "As long as you remember, there will be pain."

"But it doesn't have to." Soujirou's grin widened. "I can not move past what I have done as long as it remains like this. But if I were to do that, if the murdering child Shishio raised was to become separate, I could move forward."

"You can not do that." Kenshin's voice became harder. Soujirou did not understand.

"Yes I can! I do not want this side of me. I do not want these memories."

"You have to live with it." Kenshin's voice rose. "It is your atonement to remember. To carry the burden of what you have done as you try to live day by day."

Soujirou frowned.

"Then your atonement is a failure."

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A/N:

Ooooooooooo. One word for Soujirou. Cold. Sorry about the time it took to get this chapter out, I had the worst time with it. It's shorter than most, but that's actually because I took out some of the murderous mayhem stuff and put it in the next chapter (which should be out sooner). The action just didn't seem to fit with the psychological feel of this chapter.

If you haven't been able to tell, I enjoy character growth. My three main victims, er, subjects are Kenshin, Kaoru, and Soujirou. Kenshin because he is so much fun to screw with, Kaoru because I see allot of untapped potential in her character, and Soujirou because I can see so many different possibilities with him. Also expect some Megumi and Sano growth, two characters whose complexities are often overlooked in favor of our sexy redhead. You know what, just pour fertilizer over everyone because I have plans for just about the whole cast. Bwahahahaha!

Kenshin: Sessha would love some growth, de gozaru yo!

Hiko: She doesn't mean in height, baka deshi!

Kenshin: Damn.

Hiko: turns towards reader Review, or else…brandishes his katana

Kenshin: Oro!

a.Tanuki – Raccoon. Saitoh, the bestower of nicknames in Rurouni Kenshin, was the first to call Kaoru this. Understandably, Kaoru doesn't appreciate being compared to a Raccoon (actually, a Tanuki is a raccoon dog, but all the translations call her raccoon girl).

b.Sessha – This unworthy one. Sessha is Kenshin's way of saying I in RK. Irritating yes (Kenshin is anything but unworthy), but its one of Kenshin's trademark Rurouni expressions. Personally I prefer the masculine 'ore' that the Battousai uses.

c.De gozaru ka/yo/ya - Kenshin tacks on this polite and very formal inflection ending all the time. Almost impossible to translate, the closest counterpart is 'that it is'. 'Ka' is used when it's a question, 'Yo' when it is a statement that needs emphasis, and 'Ya' when it is merely a statement. Sometimes, he just goes with 'de gozaru' (that's Kenshin for you, always tripping you up). It was common to samurai and ninja, because they usually serve masters, and it's a very archaic form of 'de gozaimasu'. In the RK series, Kenshin is the only one who uses it because he's so cool no one cares if his speech is in a time warp. Now if Saitoh said 'de gozaru' we'd all be seriously disturbed…


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